Iconic SLO County bar reopening after closing last year due to COVID

Baywood favorite the Merrimaker bar is reopening soon, according to the new operators, Jose and Monica Flores, who run La Palapa Mexican restaurant just down the block.

The property is owned by the Bill Lee family, which shuttered the famed bar last year with all the COVID-19 restrictions in place.

Since then, Lee, a Los Osos/Baywood developer, died in April, leaving a number of his projects in limbo.

Those include the upscale eatery Blue Heron, still closed, and next door’s Back Bay Cafe, which, after a limited opening this summer, posted on its front door that it was closed indefinitely. Until this weekend, the bar too, was dark.

Lee founded the commercial real estate company Lee & Associates, the largest broker-owned company in the United States — still in operation across the West.

He retired to Los Osos but did not slow down, launching a number of enterprises in Baywood, starting with The Back Bay Inn. The hotel, still in operation, is expected to expand, a project Lee initiated before he died.

In 2019, he purchased the Merrimaker property, located at 1302 2nd St.

Lee is survived by his children, who continue to manage the affairs but have not as of yet announced a firm direction on plans in these uncertain economic times. Lee’s four children, Robb, John, Ryan and Katie, each will likely play a role.

But one source close to the family says, “everything will be coming back in the near future.”

Lee looked to change the image of the Merrimaker from a shabby “dive bar” to a comfortable neighborhood bar with new exterior construction and updated furnishings.

By popular demand, he did not change the iconic rooftop sign. Ironically, despite the effort to change the image, Wikipedia continues to post a photo of the Merrimaker as an example of what a dive bar looks like.

The Flores family had planned to open the doors to the reborn Merrimaker on Friday, Oct. 15, but had to push that back unexpectedly.

The bar said it had to postpone the reopening “due to unforeseen circumstances,” but added “the extra wait will be so worth it.”

The opening will now be on Friday, Oct. 22, from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m., featuring live music from Burning James.

Also in Baywood, Noi’s Little Thai is closed for now, but the owners say they will be back serving morning coffee and a more limited breakfast menu than before.

John Lindt is the editor of the news site Sierra2theSea.net. The story has been updated with information on the Merrimaker’s grand reopening.

This story was originally published October 15, 2021 at 5:00 AM.